" I've moved so much that I've given almost all books away. This is one I've saved. I've lost it twice, replaced it twice. I can't remember the last time I opened it, yet I would feel lost without it. Once, this was my cure for anxiety. Overcome, I would open it at random and read until I felt better. On the one hand, it affirms the uniqueness and wonder of all things. On the other, it reminds us of how insignificant we are in our universe of mind-boggling numbers. Both of these themes are developed in a roundabout way, through roughly a dozen subjects that Dillard repeatedly returns to--birth, China, clouds, thinker, and so on--examining them from different angles in her recognizably offbeat and unsettling way. Some parts drag, and many people would detest the book as a whole. The first time I picked it up, I dropped it after a few pages. But something made me open it again, and I was glad I did. One of the most intriguing, thought-provoking, and beautifully written books I've read by one of our most eccentric living authors. "
— Lynn, 2/16/2014